June 25, 2003

Bang on a Can Festival Features Many Free Events

(North Adams, Mass.)As part of the second annual Bang on a Can Contemporary Music Festival at MASS MoCA from July 9 through July 26, there are a host of concerts, recitals, and events both on the MASS MoCA campus and throughout the North Adams community.

The word quartet generally conjures up visions of violins, violas, and cellos, but as Mark Stewart (one third of the trio that makes up Polygraph Lounge) knows, quartet can describe any group of four instruments. To that end he's organized a guitar quartet for a concert on Wednesday, July 23 at 6 PM. Taking his unique quartet outside, the performance will take place at Natural Bridge State Park on the lawn outside the ranger station. This one-of-a-kind concert is free.

A group of percussionists from Bang on a Can will perform at the Eagle Street Beach Party on Wednesday, July 16, at 6 P.M. This concert is also free.

In addition to these performances in the community, the MASS MoCA campus explodes with music during Bang on a Can's nearly three-week residency. Recitals in the galleries every day (except Sunday) at 4:30 PM start on July 11 and run through July 25. The recitals are free with museum admission. In addition to the scheduled afternoon recitals, other impromptu rehearsals and recitals will take place throughout the MASS MoCA campus each day of the residency. The MASS MoCA Box Office at 413 662 2111 can provide a complete schedule of performances and locations, which is updated daily.

Featured events of the festival include a cabaret with Polygraph Lounge on Saturday, July 12, a Bang on a Can All Stars concert with special guests Thurston Moore and Kim Gordon of Sonic Youth on Saturday, July 19, and the Bang on a Can Marathon on Saturday, July 26. Both concerts are sponsored by The Berkshire Eagle. There is also a music event for children, Kids Can Too, on Saturday, July 19, at 10:30 A.M which is sponsored by Berkshire Bank and WMNB/WNAW in North Adams, and WSBS in Great Barrington. Tickets for these events are available by calling the MASS MoCA Box Office at 413 662 2111.

Singer and composer Mark Stewart plays an arsenal of instruments including several homemade ones. After spending a summer performing at Lincoln Center in Shakespeare's Twelfth Night with Helen Hunt, Stewart spent much of 1999-2001 performing, touring, and recording with Paul Simon. He is a member of Steve Reich and Musicians and a founding member of the Bang on a Can All-Stars. He's also worked with Paul McCartney, Bob Dylan, Anthony Braxton, Cecil Taylor, and Meredith Monk, among others. He has worked extensively with composer Elliot Glodenthal on music for feature films including Titus, The Butcher Boy, Bob the Gambler, and In Dreams and Heat. Stewart has performed in a number of Broadway productions, including The Lion King and The Who's Tommy.

For additional information call, 413.662.2111, or visit the MASS MoCA Box Office on Marshall Street in North Adams from 10 A.M. until 6 P.M. daily.

MASS MoCA, the largest center for contemporary visual and performing arts in the United States, is located off Marshall St. in North Adams on a 13-acre campus of renovated 19th-century factory buildings.

For Immediate Release
Contact: Katherine Myers
(413) 664-4481 x8113
katherine@massmoca.org